Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadov held a series of meetings with top managers of the fuel and energy complex of the countries involved in the issue of the implementation of the TAPI gas pipeline project (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India).in Ashgabat.

Industry ministers arrived in the Turkmen capital to participate in the next meeting of the Steering Committee of the TAPI, according to information released Nov.20 by the government.

During a meeting with the president of Turkmenistan, the minister of mining and oil resources of Afghanistan Mohammad Akbar Barakzaya, “expressed his full support to the Afghan side of the initiatives of the president of Turkmenistan concerning the global energy security,” according to the government’s report.

President of Turkmenistan also received the State Minister for Oil and Natural Resources of Pakistan Jam Kamal Khan, who confirmed the “high interest of Pakistan in the early start of this project.”

The Turkmen president also met with the Minister of Oil and Gas of India Dharmendra Pradhan, who also expressed his “commitment to the Indian side to this energy project, initiated by Turkmenistan.”

The Turkmen head said that “one can talk about the effective consolidating and stabilizing factor of TAPI project, which is capable to have a positive impact on the situation in Central and South Asia and the region in the future and in general, to give additional stability to the entire system of political and economic relations on the continent,” the report said.

“We consider each project, in the first place, in terms of its economic viability and commercial benefit for all participating countries,” said President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadov “Turkmenistan’s commitment to expand its export infrastructure of the gas market is more than natural,” the report said.

President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadov also said that the construction of the gas pipeline, which will provide long-term and guaranteed supplies of Turkmen natural gas to South-East Asia in the near future, is another step towards the implementation of Turkmenistan’s energy strategy, focused on the creation of a multi-vector system of energy supplies to the world’s major markets.

On Nov.19, the sides involved in TAPI project, held meetings at the level of experts in Ashgabat, exploring the renovation of the feasibility study, the registration of TAPI Ltd and the selection of companies that claim to leadership in the consortium.

It was earlier reported that Turkmengaz State Concern, Afghan Gas Corporation, Pakistan’s Inter State Gas Systems (Private) Limited and India’s GAIL (India) Limited established an operating company for the TAPI pipeline. The company will construct the TAPI pipeline and will be engaged in the operation of this pipeline.

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadov said at the meeting of the Council of Elders in October that it is planned to start the construction of TAPI in 2015.

The basic document for the promotion of TAPI is Ashgabat interstate agreement signed between the participating states in 2010 on starting the practical implementation of this project.

The design capacity of the TAPI will be up to 33 billion cubic meters of gas per year, while the expected lifetime is 30 years.